SYTYCD - Audition Rundown

So You Think You Can Dance is back and if the past 2 weeks of auditions are any indication season 5 will not disappoint. This year has thus far brought a lot more tapping, the wisdom of Lil C (please make him a permanent judge), the amazingness of Adam Shankman and oh yes the return of Sex. While there were plenty of good dancers showcased here are our top 3 guys, girls and couple. You people are lazy so let's start with the best.

Nathan Trasoras (my overall favorite) - What can I say - I'm a sucker for a boy that can turn. Unfortunately Nathan was too young to make it onto Vegas. Lucky for us the gods are gifting us with a Fall season of SYTYCD (auditions in Atlanta Monday!). I would be shocked if we don't see Nathan in the Top 20 come November.

Erik "Silky" Moore - One of several great tappers showcased thus far but Silky added his own hip-hop touch. If you're worried he won't be able to tackle contemporary choreography check this out.

Evan Kasprzak - So different from what we normally see on this show and so entertaining. Oh and did you see that leap?



Natalie Reid - After being the last one out of the Top 20 last year Natalie is back and in my opinion better than before.



Gabi Rojas - She grew up in the circus and it shows. A little bit of contortionist, a little bit of theater and a lot of great dancing.



Anna Dunn - The judges took exception with her "head banging" but I loved her interpretation of the music and her choreography.



Asuka and Ricky - They're no Pasha and Anya but definitely the best ballroom dancers we've seen.

Your Weekend Homework

He made us bring em out and taught us that with swagga like us we can have whatever we like. He's the King of ATL and now he's incarcerated. Won't you show some love to T.I.? In the midst of all your weekend revelry and mastery of renal physiology take some time and drop the man who brought you party jam after party jam a quick note and let him know you appreciate him.

CLIFFORD J HARRIS
REGISTER NUMBER: 59458-019
FCI FORREST CITY LOW
FEDERAL CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION
P.O. BOX 9000
FORREST CITY, AR 72336

P.S. If you feel so inclined please share your note with the world in the comments.

Frightened Rabbit: "Swim Until You Can't See Land"

New Frightened Rabbit!!! This solo acoustic performance by Scott Hutchison isn't perfect (you can actually hear helicopters, etc) in the background, but I guess that's what you'd expect from a guy playing his guitar on a park/garden bench. Frightened Rabbit's most recent album, The Midnight Organ Fight, is one of my absolute favorites from 2008. "Swim Until You Can't See Land," recorded for Off The Beaten Tracks, makes me confident that their next record will be just as good.

80's Dancing? Yes Please!

So our music guru has already shared his thoughts on Phoenix's new album but we came across this video and just had to share. What happens when you mix catchy pop with classic 80's movies? Pure magic. We can only hope one day to have the dancing skills of Molly Ringwald.

Dark Was The Night: Streamig Concert (NPR)

Photo by Natasha Ryan [via Brooklyn Vegan]

Remember that amazing compilation album that benefited the Red Hot organization? Well, a bunch of artists featured on Dark Was The Night came together for a concert at Radio City Music Hall on May 3rd. You probably weren't there (we certainly weren't), but the great great people at NPR (seriously, they're everywhere) have streaming audio of almost the entire concert... which featured a veritable Who's Who of critically-acclaimed musicians. Even better, you can download the concert as a podcast and take it with you wherever you go! Set-list [via Pitchfork] is below.

Dirty Projectors:
"Useful Chamber"
"Stillness Is the Move"
"Ambulance Man" [ft. David Byrne]
"Knotty Pine" [ft. David Byrne]

My Brightest Diamond:
"Feeling Good" (Nina Simone cover) [ft. the National]

The National:
"Vanderlylle Cry Baby"

Dave Sitek:
"With a Girl Like You" (The Troggs cover)

David Byrne:
"Don't Fence Me In" (Cole Porter cover)
"Dreamworld: Marco de Canavezes" [ft. Bon Iver]

Bon Iver:
"Brackett, WI"
"Blood Bank"
"Big Red Machine" [ft. the National]
"Flume" [ft. My Brightest Diamond]

Feist:
"Train Song" (Vashti Bunyan cover) [ft. Bon Iver]
"Someday Baby" (Bob Dylan cover)

Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings:
"Not Gonna Cry"
"When I Come Home"
"Inspiration Information"
"100 Days, 100 Nights"

Dark Was the Night All-Stars/Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings:
"This Land Is Your Land"

What We're Listening To

Wale: "Hot Shyt" [feat. Peedi Crakk, Black Thought, 2Face, and Young Chris]
Whoa... this track is unbelievable, and although you'd think that at 5 verses, "Hot Shyt" might be long and overbearing, it's machine-gun like quickness prevents you from doing anything other than hitting the rewind button. Just a great track by Wale and his friends from Philly.


Bowerbirds: "Northern Lights"
This has been circulating for a while now, and it's quite possibly the prettiest song we've heard this year. If it sounds like it was written during a warm, summer night in the Appalachians, well then it very well might've been.
MP3:> Bowerbirds: "Northern Lights"

BBU: "Chi Don't Dance"
BBU stands for Bin Laden Blowin' Up. Now that we have that out of the way, enjoy this infectious proclamation of dance refusal... for those stubborn kids in Chicago won't do it. Juke? Yes. Dance? Hell no.
MP3:> BBU: "Chi Don't Dance"

Free Energy: "Dream City"
If I have to wait for an indefinite amount of time for another LCD Soundsystem album, then I guess I'll have to do with this fantastic band James Murphy just signed to his DFA label. "Dream City" is a throwback, and it's just in time for summer.
MP3:> Free Energy: "Dream City"

Sara Bareilles and Ingrid Michaelson: "Winter Song"
This week's most popular audition song for lyrical/contemporary dancers on SYTYCD is actually a Christmas song, but because it's so pretty we'll let it permeate our springtime tunes. Bonus trivia: This song was also performed on another show featured on GSATW - any guesses?


Jason Wade: "You Belong to Me"
Some of my college friends and I like to play a little game called "If I were on American Idol what would I sing?" Since Idol is over, it's time to spread the love to SYTYCD. If I were to audition for the show this year I would definitely choose this tune from the Shrek soundtrack. It's acoustic, sweet and totally evokes emotion that would totally win over Nigel and Mary. Send me straight to Vegas!!

Mos Def: "Casa Bay" Video

Mos Def raps fast. He also mumbles. A combination of speed and mumbling is probably not the best thing for being able to understand what a rapper is saying. This video for Mos Def's newest track "Casa Bey" (which we've been meaning to post for a minute) serves as an assistance for those us who can't quite catch everything.